moose eater
Well-known member
I've got the machine above, nealry totally rebuilt a few years ago by the then-Yamaha guru in town. Sort of the Maytag Repairman for older Yamahas then. He's no longer in the picture, or I'd consult with him.
I mostly run Ski Doos.
This machine, like the others, primarily goes to the bush, pulling moderate to heavy weight sleds with gear, mostly on remote ice fishing trips, etc..
It's got a completely rebuilt 485 motor (labelled as a 480), including new crank shaft and bearings, over-sized pistons, rings, chain case w/gears & chain, and a new carbide=embedded 1.22" lug track with custom tunnel protectors so it doesn't chew the tunnel up.
The original owner took out the original factory electric start and battery in an effort to lighten the front end to get what he thought would be better flotation, for which he maybe saved 20-25 lbs. total (my guess).
I put on slightly wider polymer skis years ago with custom spindle bushings, so the flotation saved by the lbs. he removed are moot at this time, imo, other than for the inconvenience of a poorly designed routing of the pull cord through rotating spindles on the way from the recoil to the pull start handle. But the layout of the motor, engine area, and muffler inside the cowling makes the inconvenient/problematic routing of the pull start cord a necessary deficiency..
The pull cord and manual starter recoil are the 2 weak links at this time for a remote trip.
My intent is to return it to original electric start, keeping a newly rebuilt recoil manual start system onboard as an emergency starting method only. The thing pulls like dragging an ox through a swamp at -10 to -20 f.
Anyone have experience re-installing electric start on one of these machines?
I can get properly remanned electrical components from a reputable US/Canadian outfit near the east Coast, or most Yamaha factory gear (not all) is still available for a first born and a couple quarts of blood.
I try not to buy Chinese junk from ebay, Amazon, etc..
Anyone?
I mostly run Ski Doos.
This machine, like the others, primarily goes to the bush, pulling moderate to heavy weight sleds with gear, mostly on remote ice fishing trips, etc..
It's got a completely rebuilt 485 motor (labelled as a 480), including new crank shaft and bearings, over-sized pistons, rings, chain case w/gears & chain, and a new carbide=embedded 1.22" lug track with custom tunnel protectors so it doesn't chew the tunnel up.
The original owner took out the original factory electric start and battery in an effort to lighten the front end to get what he thought would be better flotation, for which he maybe saved 20-25 lbs. total (my guess).
I put on slightly wider polymer skis years ago with custom spindle bushings, so the flotation saved by the lbs. he removed are moot at this time, imo, other than for the inconvenience of a poorly designed routing of the pull cord through rotating spindles on the way from the recoil to the pull start handle. But the layout of the motor, engine area, and muffler inside the cowling makes the inconvenient/problematic routing of the pull start cord a necessary deficiency..
The pull cord and manual starter recoil are the 2 weak links at this time for a remote trip.
My intent is to return it to original electric start, keeping a newly rebuilt recoil manual start system onboard as an emergency starting method only. The thing pulls like dragging an ox through a swamp at -10 to -20 f.
Anyone have experience re-installing electric start on one of these machines?
I can get properly remanned electrical components from a reputable US/Canadian outfit near the east Coast, or most Yamaha factory gear (not all) is still available for a first born and a couple quarts of blood.
I try not to buy Chinese junk from ebay, Amazon, etc..
Anyone?
